1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to equipment used to extend the reach, and to allow gripping of objects by handicapped persons. More precisely the invention relates to one-handed manually operated devices which do not require the use of the fingers for gripping or manipulating the clamping device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many handicapped or disabled people, especially those confined to a wheelchair or bed, find reaching for or lifting certain items, difficult or even impossible due to limited strength and mobility. Those people having hands and fingers affected with various dysfunctions which limit the strength and range of motion of the fingers find lifting and grasping items especially difficult.
There exist many reaching aids and clamping devices for the handicapped found in the prior art. Several devices are power operated by electricity, compressed CO.sub.2 cartridges or other power sources and cannot be operated manually and therefore are not included in the same category as my manually operated device. Of the manually operated past art reaching aids, the majority of the devices require the use of the hand and fingers to grip and or operate the device. The two following past art patents, examined in a search conducted in the U.S. Patent Office, are indicative of this category of reaching aids: the U.S. patent issued to van Zelm on Feb. 22, 1983, U.S. Pat. No. 4,374,600, illustrates a hand-grip lock-type member requiring the use of the entire hand to successfully operate the device. The Lasch, Jr. device, U.S. Pat. No. 3,194,597, shows a hand held pick-up tool having a shovel like gripper which is activated by a finger loop.
Another U.S. patent held by van Zelm, U.S. Pat. No. 4,613,179, teaches a griping device having a three point lateral restraint including a thumb support element, a wrist brace and an arm support element. Very little strength or mobility of the hand and fingers is required to support this device. The clamping member however, is actuated by a lanyard which is operated by the free hand of the user. This device cannot be operated by one hand alone, as my device, which tends to eliminate use by those having little or no function of the free hand.
Therefore, none of the past art devices can be operated with one hand by a person having very limited gripping strength in his hands and fingers. Either the entire hand must be used to grip and hold the device or one or more of the fingers must be maneuverable to operate the gripping member. Therefore none of the previously mentioned devices would prove useful to someone having very limited use of his fingers and or limited use of only one hand. My device overcomes these disadvantages and provides a new and novel gripping aid for handicapped persons.